by Zhou Daxin
“Can a good start help us? I heard that the electoral commissioner has arrived, and is staying in Zhan Shideng’s house, eating and drinking with him every day. Zhan Shideng has also sent out the message that the village will once again promote him as village leader.”
“It doesn’t matter who promotes a candidate, or who himself is a candidate. People must always vote in the elections in Chu Wang Village, and nobody would dare to vote in our stead, not even those that manage the county. Two days ago I secretly called the big brother who guards the town government gates, and according to him, electing a leader is based on the number of votes. Whoever gets the most votes is the leader. So you need not worry about Zhan Shideng. Let them promote him as the leader, and if more people vote for you, then you will be the leader without any promotion from above. What we need to worry about is letting more people know that once you do become the leader, you will bring more benefits to the village folk than Zhan Shideng does!”
“So apart from all of the ideas that we have now, what else should we do?” Kaitian’s eyes were wide open as he asked.
“I’ve thought about it. Take a big sheet of white paper and write with a brush all of the things that you want to do after you become the leader, and stick it on the village committee office wall, so that the whole village knows what things you are willing to do after you step up to the position.”
“What things will we do for the villagers?” Kaitian scratched his head: “I’ve never really thought about that.”
“Well, you give it a good thought. If you are going to become the leader you will have to use your brains a bit more.”
“To increase the yearly income of every household.” Kaitian probed, whilst tugging at his ear.
“Yes, better have a figure, so that every villager will understand at first sight. My thought is, if you really become the leader, to increase the yearly household income by 300–500 Yuan. Sound okay?” Nuannuan looked at Kaitian, smiling.
“We will need a plan for it to be okay!”
“I’ve heard from some of the tourists staying at Chu Di Ju that our locally produced sweet potato could be transported and sold to the east bank vermicelli factory, as the price is 2 cents cheaper per jin; and if our local duck eggs, chili peppers, hawthorn, fungus and Sichuan peppers are transported to the city on the east bank to sell, they would all be sold for about twice the price. When the time comes, you should organize people to purchase goods here at a price higher than the west bank but lower than the east bank, then transport by boat to the city on the east bank to sell, so the villagers can earn a bit more, and the purchasers can too. Isn’t this a good idea? Also, I heard a tourist from Beijing say that the type of Magnolia tree we plant on either side of our local houses not only provides for a pleasant sight, but also has medicinal and fragrance properties, and inside its flower buds are refined eucalypt oil, lily magnolia essence, and much more. It can be used as a medicine to cure diseases, and also as a perfume. I’ve heard that a factory has been built on the east bank to make perfume, specifically collecting the flower buds of the magnolia. I remember Uncle Black Bean went to the east bank to buy some of these things, and Zhan Shideng had relied on the sale of Magnolia flower buds to earn lots of money. If you become the leader, you must go and find out, and make an agreement with the factory, and afterwards call on every family to plant Magnolia trees on either side of their houses. As this kind of magnolia grows quickly, two to three years after planting, the flower buds will be ready to collect, and when that time comes, wouldn’t every family be able to sell the buds to earn some money? I also heard somebody from Tianjin say that nowadays, city folk are interested in eating wild vegetables. Now, don’t we have lots of wild vegetables growing on the other side of the mountain? When that time comes, and when all of the families have time, everybody can go up the mountain and collect wild vegetables, dry them in the sun and then sell. This is another way to earn money, right?”
“Oh my, you certainly know more than I do.”
“You need to use your ears and listen more when these city folk are here, as they have seen more and have a wider knowledge, so while we provide them accommodation, we must also learn a little from them also!”
“Yes, from these ideas I feel the courage to write a pledge down on paper. I will write: Grandmas, grandpas, uncles, aunties, brothers and sisters! If you choose me, Kuang Kaitian to become the village leader, I promise that each year, I will bring 300–500 yuan more to the basic income into every household.”
“To put it in this way makes you seem like a true man!”
“I’ll write it like just that. Now off to buy a big sheet of paper and a brush!” …
Chapter 34
Kaitian’s campaign pledge was put up on the village committee’s gable at high noon, and immediately Chu Wang Village exploded with the news. People came one after another, still carrying their food bowls to have a look. Some reacted with surprise, others with excitement, tapping on the rims of their bowls with chopsticks: “Goodness, that Kaitian has some guts, not afraid to go toe-to-toe with Leader Zhan!” Yet others reacted with worry, going to the Kuang family household and whispering to Nuannuan: “Be careful now, you don’t know what people would do to your family!” Nuannuan only laughed, and said nothing. That day, Zhan Shideng was receiving cadres from the township to drink with him, and it was already late afternoon by the time he learned about it all and came running to see. Shocked on the spot, he did not move for a long time.
The day of the election was close now, and after dinner Nuannuan dragged Dangen around, dropping by the poorest families in the village, whereby she did not mention the election, but instead drew out daily conversation, chatting about their children, the crops and poultry foul, and give some advice on earning money, speaking with the families until she felt a genuine friendship growing. Nuannuan used this tactic to bring many people on side with Kaitian.
The next day after breakfast, the bells to start the election ran in the village. As there were few visitors staying at Chu Di Ju over the past few days, yesterday Nuannuan gave all of her workers the morning off today, so that everybody could vote. Hearing the bell, Big Sister Shallot called to all of the workers to follow her to the assembly place. Nuannuan watched Shallot with much gratitude, and believed that if these workers are to vote, surely they will vote for Kaitian.
Nuannuan looked up towards the sky. The weather was good, a deep blue sky with only a few white clouds, which were quickly pulled into wisps by the wind, just as poplar cotton is tugged into the sky from the ground. “Buddha, Gods, without the cover of cloud you see clear! We contend with the Leader only to escape his torment, if only you uphold this justice, then the Zhan’s wish will not be granted! …”
It was only when she heard the sound of Lao Tao, the town cadre, when her eyes fell back down to the assembly place. Lao Tao again explained the significance of the election, the reason why the town had recommended Zhan Shideng as a candidate, the customary rules and regulations of an election, and then faced the assembly, asking: “Does anybody want to say anything?”
The noisy assembly suddenly fell quiet.
“Before the voting begins, anybody that wants to speak up can!” Lao Tao again emphasized.
The assembly was silent. After a while, Lao Tao announced:“Well, if nobody has anything to say, then the voting can begin …”
Nuannuan’s chest grew tight. She understood that after this act of utterly stamping on Zhan Shideng’s face was finished and, if Kaitian was not voted in, the family would have to prepare to leave the village and become migrant labourers. After filling in the ballot and putting it in the box, she did not go to speak with Kaitian or anybody else, instead going by herself for a walk to the lakeside. All that was left next was to wait, wait for a result that she could not predict. She knew that Zhan Shideng was also waiting, and hoped that he was waiting in vain.
She gazed at the water while listening out for sounds of activity from the assembly. The nois
e had already died down, the votes probably already cast, and the ballots would be called out …
At that moment, applause came from the assembly place behind her, and her whole body trembled.
The result has arrived!?
She couldn’t help but to turn and look, and saw Shallot running towards her very fast, clutching at her chest.
“Nuannuan, Nuannuan —”
Nuannuan held her breath.
“Voted in — Kaitian was voted in —”
The words burst over her, and the heavy weight on her chest suddenly broke into a thousand pieces. It was as though she saw the pieces falling away, and she felt a calmness she had never experienced before. At first her legs wanted to dance, and then they went limp and she sat down, and then she could hear as her tears splashed onto the ground.
She did not remember how she returned home, and could only remember Lao Tao from the town office, sitting and speaking to Kaitian, many villagers squeezed into the yard, and Spotty Laosi and Jiuding raising glasses of alcohol …
Chapter 35
The next day, Nuannuan woke very late. The many days of nervousness and anxiety had turned to exhaustion, and she slept with complete indulgence, till the sun was high in the sky. Her mother-in-law heated her breakfast in the wok, and told her, while she was eating, that Kaitian had gone for a meeting at the village committee. She nodded, then continued eating and thought to herself that she hadn’t had such a delicious meal for a long time, suddenly aware that she was no longer to be tormented. What a good feeling.
When Kaitian arrived back at midday he said that the township had notified him to go to the town government for a meeting the day after tomorrow. “You should go, a town meeting is such an honour to attend. Zhan Shideng used to go to town meetings with such a smug look on his face.” Nuannuan laughed. Kaitian tugged at his lapel, and muttered: “What, go wearing these clothes?” “What’s wrong with your clothes?” Nuannuan didn’t understand. “You never saw when Zhan Shideng went to the town meetings, did you? His clothes were always prim and proper. If I arrive in these clothes I would surely be the laughing stock of the meeting!” Nuannuan realized that Kaitian wanted some presentable clothing, and said: “Well, this won’t be hard to manage, right? In the afternoon we will go to the Liu family tailor shop in the village; they have ready-made fabrics and do fine handiwork. Tailor Liu will make some presentable clothing for you, and if it is ready in time for the meeting there shouldn’t be problem, right?” Kaitian nodded as he laughed: “Right!”
After lunch, Nuannuan gave Dangen to Grandma, then took Kaitian to the Liu family tailor shop. When Tailor Liu saw the newly appointed leader arriving, he very warmly offered a seat and poured tea, and hearing that Kaitian wanted some clothes made up, he hurriedly brought over fabrics that the family had made for Kaitian and Nuannuan to choose from. When Nuannuan chose a light coloured fabric, Kaitian shook his head: “No no. Haven’t you seen on the television, every leader wears dark coloured clothes?” Nuannuan said: “Fine, then we need a dark blue material.” Tailor Liu asked what the design of the clothing would be, and when Nuannuan said that a jacket would be fine, Kaitian again shook his head, saying: “It should be a suit. Suits are now the government dress. Don’t the big leaders you watch on TV all wear suits?” Nuannuan listened and began to laugh: “Okay, okay, have a suit then!”
When the suit arrived on time, delivered by Tailor Liu before dark the next day, Nuannuan at once called for Kaitian to try it on. The suit was a good fit on Kaitian, and he strolled around the yard, chest out and chin raised, asking Nuannuan: “Do I look like a leader now?” Nuannuan laughed, saying: “Yes, yes …”
Kaitian had two days of meetings with the township, and arrived back from Juxiang Street on his bike at dusk, just as Nuannuan was at the front of Chu Di Ju arranging things with some late arrival guests. After the guests entered the yard, Nuannuan turned her head to see Kaitian, pushing his bike along with a cigarette in his mouth. She spoke first: “Welcome back.” Then followed quickly with: “Well, I didn’t know you were a smoker? Why are you smoking?” Kaitian answered, laughing: “During the town meeting, all of the other leaders were smoking, and if we don’t smoke it would be obvious that we are out of the loop,so I started smoking.” Nuannuan wasn’t too happy about this: “You learn damn fast!”
“It won’t do not to learn. People only see you as a leader if you always appear as one!” Kaitian exclaimed with his hands spread …
So Kaitian could focus completely on his job as leader, Nuannuan shouldered the work of the company by herself. From advertising on the east bank to attracting tourists, to arranging guest accommodation in Chu Di Ju, guiding tourists to visit the Great Wall of Chu, Lingyan temple and the lake center, everything was down to herself to coordinate and manage, and she was busy every day, morning till night.
One night just before bedtime, Nuannuan still had not seen Kaitian return to have dinner, and was anxiously awaiting him, thinking that he must be busy with the village work. Her heart skipped a beat with the thought: even busy men must eat! Just as she was thinking to leave Dangen at home to go to the village office and find Kaitian, Uncle Black Bean entered the yard, propping up Kaitian, as they both staggered in. At first Nuannuan thought that Kaitian had come down with some kind of illness, but as she stepped forwards to meet them she sensed the thick scent of alcohol coming from Kaitian, and only then did she realize he was drunk. “God, where have you been drinking so heavily?” Nuannuan asked with a start. She knew that Kaitian usually didn’t indulge in alcohol, only drinking a few cups when the occasional opportunity arose to accompany guests, and she had never seen him drunk before.
“At my place! Today is a good day, so the two of us drink a little more than we should have.” Uncle Black Bean hurriedly explained. Nuannuan listened, hiding her surprise. She knew that with many children, Uncle Black Bean’s family was far from the wealthiest in the village, and without any money to offer a drink, how can Kaitian get drunk at his house? Nuannuan did not ask more questions, and held up Kaitian so that Uncle Black Bean could leave. Kaitian was so drunk that he couldn’t even get into bed, and kept on sliding off onto the ground. Nuannuan used all of her energy to put him back into bed, and lying there he continued to mumble: “Drink up … drink up! …” It was not until the first light of day that Kaitian became conscious, and it was then, as Nuannuan fed him a bowl of boiled water that she was able to ask him why he had gone to Uncle Black Bean’s house to drink. Kaitian said: “He wants extra land ownership to build a new house, so that his oldest son can get married. He’s asking for such a big favour, so of course he should offer me a banquet! He should have sent a present too. Didn’t we also send a gift to Zhan Shideng with our land ownership?” Nuannuan hadn’t seen this side of Kaitian, asking: “His family is so poor, yet you still have the mind to drink from his cups?” Kaitian laughed: “So poor that they cannot manage me one banquet? Actually, Black Bean’s wife isn’t much good with stir-fry, and her meal was rubbish compared to the daily meals that you cook.” “You must not drink like that, from this day on!” It was clear from Nuannuan’s tone that she was unhappy. “Okay, but I will have to drink from time to time, otherwise everyone will think that the leader is good-for-nothing, that he won’t even accept a meal and a drink, and after a while they will begin to resent me!” This annoyed Nuannuan: “Where did all this bullshit come from?” Kaitian said: “You wouldn’t know, I heard it at the town office. They say that when going to the Commission for Discipline Inspection you have got to drink …”
Chapter 36
One day, just after finishing dinner, Shallot hurried in looking for Nuannuan, telling her that a male guest staying at Chu Di Ju was asking for the manager. Nuannuan didn’t expect this: “Is he not satisfied with our service?” Shallot shook her head: “I don’t think it’s about that”. “Is he requesting a special tour?” Shallot shook her head again: “I don’t think it’s about that either.” Nuannuan said: “Let’s go and check it
out.” The man was about 40 years old, wore a clean formal suit and had a shrewd and efficient look about him as he waited at the entrance to Chu Di Ju, his gaze fixed to a faraway point on the surface of the lake. Hearing Nuannuan’s footsteps, he turned around and, fixing his eyes on her, said: “You are the manager?” Nuannuan nodded her head: “What can I do for you?” She vaguely recalled that this person had stayed at Chu Di Ju a few times before, and had sometimes walked around in the village.
“Are you a high school graduate?” He looked down at Nuannuan with an air of disdain, examining her closely.
“Yes.” Nuannuan did not like his tone: “Why do you want to know this?”
“I cannot converse with those people not educated through high school.” He then laughed with a tone of leniency: “Have you realized that your village is currently in decline?”
“Decline?”
“I have done some investigation into your village, and found that about 40 young and middle-aged villagers have left for odd jobs outside, and 11 blooks of fields on the hill-slopes have been left to rotten. The population is shrinking and the land is going to waste. If this isn’t decline, then what is it?
“Oh, that decline.” Nuannuan sighed: “everybody wants to go to the cities and earn money. What else is there for them to do?”
